Darren and Bernard, who are both from Swansea, are just two of the hundreds of clients we have successfully obtained compensation for over the years. You may have previously heard them on Swansea Sound explaining what happened and how we helped them.
Darren's Story
On New Years Eve Darren was walking home from his sister’s where he’d been for a family party. As he crossed Ravenhill Road he was hit by a car. The driver of the car failed to stop but was apprehended by a nearby police patrol. It was found that the driver’s window was completely frosted over and he could hardly see a thing. Darren was left unconscious by the side of the road.
Liability for the accident was admitted by the driver’s insurers almost immediately. However Darren’s claim didn’t settle for sometime because of the seriousness of his injuries.
Darren’s worst injury was to his ankle. He had surgery and it was hoped that the ankle would soon be back to normal. He was examined by a medical expert who agreed that he should make a full recovery. However Darren continued to experience problems with his ankle and we decided that we shouldn't settle his claim until we knew exactly what the problem was.
Darren was re-examined and as recommended underwent further surgery to remove metalwork which was causing him discomfort. He still continued to have problems and had another operation before it was decided that the only solution was for the ankle to be fused. This was a drastic decision as it meant his movement would be very limited. It also meant that Darren was unable to return to his work as a landscape gardener.
Speaking to Darren it was apparent he was suffering psychologically as a result of the accident. He had problems with anxiety and anger. We arranged for him to see a psychiatrist who diagnosed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He recommended counselling and we arranged the funding for this treatment.
Because we had waited and listened to Darren about the problems his ankle was causing him we were able to get him the full compensation he deserved. He received almost 10 times what was originally offered for his injury because we took the time to make sure his claim was dealt with properly.
Don’t just take Darren’s word for it. Call Swansea Injury Lawyers today on 0800 8 20 20 20 for a free assessment of your case.
Bernard's Story
One spring morning, Bernard went for a walk from his home in Landore, Swansea. At the time he was a full time carer for his wife and he’d take a break once a day to get a breath of fresh air and go to the shops. As he walked along Washington Street he used a set of steps to get to a nearby foot path. The steps were in a very poor state and Bernard tried his best to avoid the missing paving slabs and tufts of weeds and grass. Unfortunately there was a large chunk of concrete missing from the last step. Bernard didn’t see this. He missed his footing and fell. He hit the ground hard and immediately became aware of pain in his shoulder.
Luckily for Bernard there was someone driving past at the time who was able to help him up and drive him home. Once home Bernard called an ambulance and went to hospital where he was told he’d broken his shoulder in three places.
Bernard rang us the day after the accident and on our advice he went straight out and took as many photographs as possible of where he fell. Once we got these we wrote a letter to the council telling them what had happened.
The council refused to accept responsibility. They used a technical argument that although they owned the set of steps it wasn’t an adopted Highway and therefore wasn’t subject to the same rules and regulations regarding repair and inspection. They also questioned Bernard’s version of events. The A&E records said that he had fallen down three steps while Bernard always said he’d only ever fallen down one.
We worked hard with Swansea barrister David Harris to show that the council’s argument was wrong. We also managed to track down the person who had helped Bernard up when he’d fallen and he was able to give us a statement saying what he had seen.
The council still wouldn’t accept liability for the accident and so in late 2012 Bernard’s claim went to trial for a judge to decide who was responsible. The judge heard evidence from the council as well as from the doctor who had made the mistake in the hospital notes. He heard from Bernard and the witness who saw Bernard fall. Bernard’s daughter was also there to explain about the impact of the accident and how she had helped him during his recovery.
In the end the judge decided that Swansea council hadn’t repaired the steps as they should have and this had created a dangerous defect which had led to Bernard’s accident. He felt that Bernard should accept some responsibility for what had happened because it was daylight and the defect could have been avoided so he split liability on a 75:25 basis in Bernard’s favour.
If like Bernard you are looking for a specialist solicitor to deal with your accident claim then call Swansea Injury Lawyers now on 0800 8 20 20 20
Swansea Injury Lawyers is a specialist personal injury claims service brought to you by Slee Blackwell Solicitors.